Tim Palmer Guinness UDV is unveiling a new look for the leading Scotch blend Bell's following a £1m research project. Both the bottle shape and the labels have been changed and the new look will be on shelves from the beginning of March. Marketing manager Tamas Fodor said: "The research project tested the design extensively. We sell 17m bottles of Bell's a year and we had to make sure the design was right for both existing and potential consumers." He said there were 15 million blended whisky drinkers in the UK, of which seven million are Bell's drinkers, and GUDV would like to convert more of the rest. The brand continues to be the top selling spirit in the UK and last year was worth £109m, but its market is declining and ACNielsen reported that sales last year fell by 3%. To help improve its performance, the brand is being backed by a £3m marketing budget in the 12 months to June. Much of this is being spent on TV advertising featuring Jools Holland. The latest burst begins next week and will be on national terrestrial TV and satellite. Bell's will also benefit in Scotland from its continued backing of the Scottish football league. The company has just signed a £3m deal to continue the sponsorship for the next four years. {{DRINKS }}

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